Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Santa Clara
No. 11 Baseball Defeats Santa Clara 8-5
2/1/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 1, 2002
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Fresno State (1-0) started its 2002 season on the positive side with an 8-5 victory over Santa Clara (0-1) in the first game of the three-game series. The Bulldogs had to survive a Bronco onslaught that saw them gain a 5-0 lead after three innings.
Senior RHP Bob Runyon (Atwater, Calif.) got the start, as expected, and found himself in an uphill battle for the early part of the game.
"We had a couple of errors but that didn't really bother me. The two balks did, though, because I thought I was okay, but I just had to adjust to the calls," said Runyon.
Santa Clara LHP Joe Niefenderfer seem to have an answer for the Bulldog bats, retiring the first eight batters of the ballgame. While the FS bats were dormant, the Broncos took advantage of some Bulldog miscues to build a 5-0 lead.
Head coach Bob Bennett came out in the third inning to try and calm down Runyon and the Bulldogs. They responded with some key defensive plays and strong pitching by Runyon and senior RHP Francisco Nieves (Oakland, Calif.).
In the fourth inning the Bulldogs finally got to Niefenderfer and loaded the bases with no outs. Senior outfielder Tobey Riday-White singled in junior Ben Fritz (San Jose, Calif.) to start the comeback. On the next play, Fresno State capitilized on a Bronco throwing error to score two more runs.
In the sixth inning the Bulldogs completed the comeback, sparked by Riday-White's three-run homer that gave FS the 6-5 lead.
"I was looking to drive something. [Niefenderfer] had been getting me out with pitches down and in, so that was what I was looking for and I got it," said Riday-White.
The Bulldogs added insurance runs on a ground out by freshman outfielder Jordan Prieto (Fresno, Calif.) and a one-run single by sophomore third baseman Casey McGehee (Aptos, Calif.).
"I came back and our defense came back. The team showed a lot of character today," said Runyon.
The Bulldogs controlled the rest of the game with solid pithing by Nieves and key double plays. Freshman second baseman Carl Lipsey (Fresno, Calif.) and sophomore shortstop Chris Patrick (Fresno, Calif.) combined for three double-plays on the day. Riday-White also flashed the leather making two good catches out in right field. Nieves pitched three scoreless innings to pick up the save.
Fresno State will play the second game of the series tomorrow at 1 p.m.
